They say money can’t buy happiness, but whoever “they” is probably hasn’t meant David Dean Halbert.
The 69-year-old Texan joined the Forbes 400 list for the first time earlier this year after the biotech he founded, Caris Life Sciences, went public. He’s estimated to be worth $4.9 billion and golfers will agree that he’s spending his money wisely.
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A couple years back, Halbert decided he wanted to build a private golf course on his property alongside Lake Granbury, about 40 miles southwest of Fort Worth. Initially, Halbert and his wife, Kathy, were thinking of constructing a small, par-3 course. “I just wanted this little thing where if I didn’t have anybody behind me and I could swing like an idiot,” Kathy told Forbes.
Instead, David befriended Tom Fazio, arguably the world’s best—and most prolific (Fazio has a staggering 14 of Golf Digest’s list of America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses) and hired him to build a “no budget” 7,500-yard, par-72 championship layout by moving a million tons of dirt and planting thousands of trees on what used to be flat hayfields. After a couple years and $50 million, Halbert National is open, although the owner expects to spend another $20 million building a clubhouse and making other alterations.
That’s great news if you’re a member of Halbert’s family or one of his friends because the tee sheet is wide open otherwise. He’s also tossed out invites to all Dallas-related tour stars including Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth and Bryson DeChambeau. Here’s Forbes’ full interview with Halbert about the course, working with Fazio and his business background.
Halbert describes golf as “sort of my only hobby” and he plays to a 12.5 handicap index. But he’s become a scratch when it comes to learning about golf course design and construction from one of the masters.
“The most fun thing I think I’ve ever done was to build that course,” Halbert tells Forbes.
Yep, he sounds pretty darn happy to us.
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